ISRO is set to launch its third lunar exploration mission, Chandrayaan-3, on Friday. It is scheduled at 2:35 pm on Friday from the Satish Dhawan Space Station in Andhra Pradesh's Sriharikota. The mission aims to land on the Moon and explore its surface.
Chandrayaan-3, the third lunar mission from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), will launch today at 2.35 p.m. from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. If the mission is successful, India will become the fourth country to do so, with a soft landing planned for the southern pole of the Moon.
The entire mission is expected to last for one lunar night, which is equivalent to 14 days on Earth. In addition, the Chandrayaan-3 will land on the Moon's surface around August 23 or 24. The lander and rover are designed to function for just one lunar day (14 earth days) because they can't withstand the extreme cold at night. Therefore, they need to land at dawn to maximise their operational time.
Also Read | Chandrayaan-3: Why is Sriharikota a prime destination for space mission launches
You can watch ISRO's moon mission launch live in the YouTube window provided here.
The launch can also be viewed on:
ISRO official website: Visit http://isro.gov.in OR ISRO's Facebook page: https://facebook.com/ISRO
Also read: Chandrayaan-3 launch: Revisiting 7 iconic moon missions in the world
The mission follows Chandrayaan-2 where scientists aim to demonstrate various capabilities including reaching the orbit of the Moon, making a soft-landing on the lunar surface using a lander, and a rover coming out of the lander to study the surface of the Moon.
Meanwhile, Ahead of Chandrayaan-3 launch, Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared a few words of motivation on Twitter. “14th July 2023 will always be etched in golden letters as far as India’s space sector is concerned. Chandrayaan-3, our third lunar mission, will embark on its journey. This remarkable mission will carry the hopes and dreams of our nation," said PM Modi on Twitter.